Akris RTW Spring 2018
An art and design enthusiast, Albert Kriemler has often used his collections to pay tribute to his favorite artists. For example, last spring he dedicated his lineup to Carmen Herrera. A year later, his runway was awash in odes to the work of Alexander Girard after Kriemler saw an exhibition of the interior, textile and furniture designer’s work at the Vitra Museum. Kriemler tends to make his homages quite literal, stamping it on his own work rather than interpreting it. The problem is, if you’re not as taken with the source material as Kriemler is, chances are seeing the art in wearable form isn’t going to do it for you.
This was particularly true of the looks in the spring lineup bearing prints of Girard’s colorful, cartoonish hand-cut and painted wooden dolls, which Kriemler supersized for the show’s set, too. He was less heavy-handed in his use of other Girard motifs — the pink-and-red-checked “Double Heart,” worked on a simple geometric lace shift dress, and the abstract shape of an untitled piece that became a tonal intarsia on a red crewneck worn over a long, lean silk crepe skirt, and a light-as-air white georgette T-shirt dress. The collection’s highlights were its elegant feminization of sportswear in top-notch Akris fabrics. A navy cotton silk double-faced zip-up jacket worn over pants that could zip off to become cropped was smart and chic. A white ensemble — breezy jacket over blouse and shorts — done in St. Gallen lace embroidery in a pattern referencing Girard’s “Roman Numerals” sketch merged both designers’ work beautifully.
Launch Gallery: Akris RTW Spring 2018
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